Delicious peanut butter apricot balls made with dried apricots, coconut flour, cornflakes, and chocolate chips ready to eat in 10 min. Usually, we make our bites with oats but this time we wanted to try something new and refreshing. We use coconut flour to bring some tasty flavor and cornflakes to add some crunchiness to our bites. Yum! Don’t forget to check out our nut butter oat balls!
Peanut butter is healthy and it improves your mood. I often try to think of different ways to include peanut butter in our diets. The peanut butter balls are a super quick way to include the butter in a recipe that my kids would it right away. I add chocolate chips as the combination of chocolate and peanut butter is one of our favorites. Check out our peanut butter chocolate smoothie!
Making the dough
Making the dough is pretty easy and straightforward. You just add all ingredients together. Depending on what type of peanut butter you use (i.e. runny, thicker) you may end up with a different dough from ours. If you feel the dough is too dry, then you can add extra peanut butter. If you feel the dough is too runny, then you can just add more cornflakes or coconut flour. The ultimate dough is the one you can shape successfully in balls.
We made 16 balls out of the dough. Feel free to make bigger or smaller balls (i.e. more or less). Just bear in mind that the nutrition facts for this recipe will change. When making the balls, if the dough starts sticking to your hands, don’t worry. Just wash your hands and optional leave some water on them and do the next ball. I do the balls with my hands to have more control over the final product. Plus, I feel I need to squeeze and shape them into my hands.
Ingredients for Peanut Butter Apricot Balls
We really keep this recipe simple and use only 5 healthy ingredients.
Peanut Butter
Peanut butter has nutrient-dense properties. Some people have allergies and some are afraid of the high-calorie count. But if you don’t have allergies try adding this nutrient food to your diet in small quantities. It is rich in protein, Vitamin B, magnesium, potassium, and zinc. It is a heart-healthy ingredient to include in a diverse diet. My kids sometimes spoon-eat it, so be careful not to overeat it.
We like our peanut butter to be made out of peanuts only. In the stores, there are machines now where you can put nuts and the machines make them into butter. It is a great way to get peanut butter. We tried peanut butter and almond butter that way and it is just delicious and fresh. Check out our Amazon link to a peanut butter example. All it has in the ingredient list is “organic peanuts” and that is what you want to eat. There is no sugar, salt, or oil added.
Coconut Flour for Peanut Butter Apricot Balls
Dried Apricots
As we mentioned, we love using dried apricots in our recipes because of all the nutrients it brings. However, if you happen not to like dried apricots or have any other dried fruit handy in your cupboard, then feel free to use it instead for this recipe. We love many dried fruits. We often dry fruit and vegetables ourselves to keep them as clean as possible. Check out our dry mango, plantain, and apples.
Cornflakes
We wanted to add something crunchy to our peanut butter apricot balls. We decided to add gluten-free, vegan cornflakes. The brand that is easy to get vegan and gluten-free is Kellogg. We used plain cornflakes without added honey, fruits, etc. Cornflakes help with digestion. They are a good source of protein, fiber, Vitamins B and D, calcium, iron, potassium, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, and folate.
Chocolate Chips
The last ingredient for those amazing peanut butter apricot balls is chocolate chips. In this recipe, I use chocolate chips as a sweetener. It is also an extra incentive for my kids to reach for the bites.
Chocolate chips do have cacao in them which is a healthy ingredient. Chocolate chips have micronutrients such as magnesium, copper, potassium, and calcium. Chocolate is also rich in healthy lipids, fiber, and polyphenols. Epicatechin, catechin, and procyanidins are some of the flavanols in chocolate that provide antioxidant benefits. Chocolate keeps your heart healthy by lowering cholesterol and blood pressure and expanding arteries, which increases blood flow. Chocolate can also decrease inflammation, reduce platelet activity, and improve immune function.
Equipment For Peanut Butter Apricot Balls
There is no special equipment needed for this recipe. We have listed in the recipe card some basic equipment that most kitchens already are equipped with such as mixing bowls, measuring sets, knives, and cutting boards.
Peanut Butter Apricot Balls
Ingredients
- ½ cup peanut butter
- ¼ cup coconut flour
- 1 cup corn flakes Kellogg Cereal
- ½ cup apricots dried
- ¼ cup chocolate chips
Instructions
Prep
- Gather all ingredients
- Chop ½ cup of dried apricots
Make the dough
- In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients: ½ cup of , ¼ cup of chopped dried apricots, ¼ cup of , ¼ cup of , and 1 cup of gluten-free, vegan cornflakes.
- Mix very well until all ingredients are well combined.
Make the balls
- I use my hands to make balls from the dough. You can use any scooping tools if that will be easier for you. If you are using the nutrition label, ensure you end up with 16 serving-sized balls at the end.
- Enjoy the peanut butter bites right away, refrigerate them for up to a week, or freeze them for up to a month in an air-tight container.
Video
Notes
- I try to buy the dried fruits with as little preservatives and chemicals as possible. I am looking for as few ingredients on the ingredient list as possible.
- Sometimes I try to dry the fruit myself. Check out our dried mango and dried apples as examples.
- If you are not a fan of dried apricots or have other dried fruit handy instead, just substitute the apricots with the dried fruit you have.
- I try to buy the nut butter from a store where you can use a machine yourself to grind as much butter from almonds and peanuts as you want. I like it because I know there is only one ingredient in my butter: peanuts or almonds. In this recipe, I use a peanut butter jar as I didn’t have other nut butter handy at the moment.
- When selecting the cornflakes and you are following a gluten-free, vegan diet, look for Kellogg’s brand or another brand that makes the cornflakes gluten-free and vegan. Not all brands offer it.
- You can refrigerate the dough prior to making the balls if that is easier for you
- If the dough is too dry, you can add more fruit, nut butter, or honey
- If the dough is too wet, you can add more coconut flour
Nutrition
We strive to provide the most accurate information possible, however, it is at your own risk when you decide to use it. For example, the nutritional information shown is an estimate provided by our recipe plugin. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. If we list a recipe as nut-free, for instance, we do our best to check all ingredients for nuts via an application. However, it is your responsibility to double-check our work before using the information as there is always room for manual error on our part or an error on the application we use.